> 80% of what the "skeptics" attack is based on issues that are not related to "web3" but to simple Proof-of-Work consensus mechanisms.
Not surprising when the vast majority of activity is on systems still using proof-of-work. Even the term "web3" is just a blatant attempt to profit off the success of the web as a technology. Not to mention, other systems that don't use proof-of-work have their own downsides. All of them are hugely inefficient compared to non-blockchain-based technology.
> The other 20% of the issues are things that skeptics claim to be "causing harm", but either ignore to see that the harm already exists with the status quo (money laundering with crypto is actually really hard
[Citation needed]
> , and a lot more money gets laundered within the existing financial infrastructure)
Again, what evidence do you have of this? And even it's true, it means nothing when the vast, vast majority of transactions happen on... existing financial infrastructure.
Are you really going to argue that a smaller proportion of crypto transactions are laundering money?
> There is no system that will be "good for all parties involved". Ever. It's all about trade-offs. It's fine if you are okay with the status quo, but don't go around thinking that everyone working in the space is either malicious or an opportunist.
Blockchain as a technology is a solution looking for a problem. It always has been. In the early days, you could be justified in thinking that there must be a worthwhile problem out there to solve with it, and that we just need to find it, because it achieved something genuinely new and exciting. To this day, not a single problem has been solved with blockchain. It just doesn't work as a foundation for a digital currency, and for so many reasons!
As for other uses of blockchain: ethereum is certainly interesting. Smart contracts are sufficiently powerful that it will be a while before I feel we've exhausted all possible uses for them, but at the end of the day, it's still in the "solution looking for a problem" phase.
In short: if you think you've found that killer problem where blockchain is the solution, go for it! I'm not judging anyone for working on it, and seeing where it goes. The issue is with everyone already invested trying to force these magic beans onto people who don't know any better, making outlandish and unsupported claims about a (so far entirely useless) technology. There's a word for this: scamming people. It happens to be illegal. If you own crypto, then you don't have an unbiased opinion on this: more enthusiasm for crypto is directly profitable to you.